The prevalence of trauma and mental health disorders among justice-involved youth is exceptionally high and shows substantial differences by both race and gender. However, few studies have examined the intersectional nature of mental health service use and its impact on reducing recidivism among a justice-involved population over time. We hypothesize that mental health service use is a promotive factor for African American youth in the juvenile justice system. Participants were 1,001 adolescents who participated in the Northwestern Juvenile Project Study between baseline and the first follow up assessment. Findings indicate that among African American youth, gender played a significant role in the impact of mental health service use on recidivism. African American girls who received mental health services were more likely to be re-arrested compared to African American boys over time. Mental health service use was significantly related to re-arrest for boys in the person level model. However, it was no longer significant when taking system-level variables into account. Age, having a mental health diagnosis, and using substances were also significantly correlated with re-arrest. Implications for using intersectionality, gender, and culturally responsive services justice-involved youth are discussed in regards to increasing positive child development outcomes among African American youth in the juvenile justice system.
